FLAGSTAFF, Arizona, March 13, 2008 (ENS) - One of the great natural wonders of the world - the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River - is threatened by uranium exploration.Three conservation groups filed a lawsuit Wednesday challenging the approval of up to 39 new uranium drilling sites within a few miles of Grand Canyon National Park.

In December, the Kaibab National Forest granted British firm Vane Minerals approval to conduct exploratory uranium drilling on national forest lands along the park’s southern boundary with no public hearing and no environmental review. It is the first of five such projects slated for the area.

I can’t imagine this happening. Still,

More than 2,000 uranium mining claims have been filed since 2003 in the Tusayan Ranger district alone, the majority of them within 10 miles of Grand Canyon National Park, says the Board of Supervisors.

Uranium contamination is the last thing the Colorado River needs. Uranium out of the ground is the last thing any of us need. Let’s ensure mining is blocked on Native land as well.

This entry was posted on Monday, March 24th, 2008 at 9:17 pm and is filed under environmental injustice, local politix. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site. Your comments will be moderated but will appear as soon as humanly possible.